1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a vending mechanism. More specifically, the invention relates to a new vending mechanism for top-loading cylindrical products, such as cans, into a vending machine without the use of diverters by dropping the products into the vending mechanism with their longitudinal axes parallel to the front face of the vending machine.
2. Related Art
U.S. Pat. No. 4,722,455 to Groover discloses a vending rack comprising first columns for supporting products in vertical stacks with the longitudinal axes of the products orthogonal to the vending machine face, and second columns for supporting products in vertical stacks with the longitudinal axes parallel to the vending machine face. The products with axes parallel to the vending machine face are supported on slide-out racks for loading products therein.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,176,288 to Craven discloses a dispensing apparatus for vending machines including at least one motor-driven auger mounted in an almost horizontal position in relation to cylindrical products rolling down a shallow slope to control storing, feeding, and dispensing of the cylindrical products.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,111,962 to Oden discloses a vending apparatus and a controller therefor to insure that the delay between a customer's selection of an article and the dispensation of the selected article is minimized. The disclosed systems and methods also insure that articles are dispensed at a proper temperature, even after a "sold-out" condition is corrected, and activate an alarm if a person jars the vending apparatus. At column 2, lines 7-19, a prior art vending apparatus is described in which two articles are retained in escrow when the sold out switch is activated, in order to ensure that the first two articles rended after refilling are dispensed at the proper temperature. These bottom two articles are positioned in a generally-horizontal array, one behind the other.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,456,147 to Tominaga shows a vending machine having gravity-fed storage chambers with displaceable supporting track segments.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,825,488 to Nelson shows a vending machine comprising a plurality of magazines, each adapted to support a plurality of cans filled with a selected product, and means for circulating conditioned air through the magazines to heat the contents of the can supported thereon to a predetermined temperature.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,814,417 to Johnson discloses a sequential feeding mechanism for vertically-stacked cylindrical articles in side-by-side magazines. The feeding mechanism comprises an operation shaft having a plurality of compound screws thereon which feed the articles to be dispensed from the bottom of each stack.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,585,011 to Johnson discloses an automatic vending machine for articles of merchandise with the articles maintained in a plurality of vertical stacks that are relatively staggered. Dispensing means underline the stacks and are moveable alternately from one stack to the other for dispensing the articles at one time.
In the above prior art vending mechanisms, cylindrical products are loaded with their longitudinal axes parallel to the front face of a vending machine. The products therefore cannot be top-loaded (dropped into the top of a vending machine and loaded by gravity alone). Rather, prior art vending mechanisms require either serpentine-type diverters or a pull out vend rack for loading cylindrical products with their longitudinal axes parallel to the front face of a vending machine. It is therefore desirable to provide a vending mechanism that allows products to be top-loaded into a vending machine with their longitudinal axes parallel to the front face of the vending machine in either single or multiple stacks without the use of diverters or a pull out rack. It is also desirable to provide such a vend mechanism that is inexpensive to manufacture and has increased product capacity.